Saturday, February 3, 2007

Little Georgie Wants More Money For His Excellent Adventures

Little Georgie will ask his Lapdogs in Congress for more than $725 billion on Monday; he wants $481 billion for his Friends and Enablers at the Pentagon, plus an additional $245 billion for his Excellent Adventures in Afghanistan and Iraq, according to Michael Abramowitz and Lori Montgomery of the Washington Post (who reached me via the Houston Chronicle).

The $245 billion little Georgie wants for his Excellent Adventures includes a boost of $99.6B for Excellent Adventures 2007, budgeted at $70B, and $145.2B for Excellent Adventures 2008, the accounting for which begins in October.

The $481B for Friends and Enablers is an increase of only $103B for them since the previous $378B appropriation in the bill which passed the Senate unanimously at the end of September.

The WP article mentions

regular spending for the Pentagon, which officials say will be $481 billion in 2008, a 10 percent increase.

But unless I am very much mistaken, an increase from $378B to $481B is more than ten percent. Ten percent of $378B would be about $38B, not $103B. Oh well, what's an extra sixty-five billion dollars among friends (not to mention enablers)?

The additional $99.6B for Excellent Adventures 2007 includes about $40B which were hinted-at by administration spokesmen last fall when they estimated that the total for Excellent Adventures 2007 would amount to $110B (rather than the $70B appropriated at the time), as well as an additional $50B to pay the actual cost of Excellent Adventures 2007, which now amounts to a mere $160B.

With this history behind us (and frightening prospects for both Iraq and Iran in the near future), and considering that on Monday Little Georgie will ask for only $145.2B for Excellent Adventures 2008, it shouldn't surprise anyone to read

administration officials warned that even more money probably will be needed.

You can strike the "probably". One thing you can rely on absolutely: more money will definitely be requested. Whether it's needed or not is another question, of course.

Whether this request will be granted -- let alone unanimously -- is another good question. Certain key Democrats have made slightly unfriendly noises recently. Let's see whether they can keep it up when it counts.

Speaking of counting, just a few more numbers for you: Previous Congresses have already approved more than $475B for Little Georgie's Excellent Adventures. If this Congress approves Monday's request, the grand total for Excellent Adventures will stand at $720B.

That's more than $240 million per person for every life lost on September 11, 2001.

And not a single one of them was killed by the people we're shooting at in Iraq.

These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.

Wisdom

And I gave my heart to know wisdom, and to know madness and folly: I perceived that this also is vexation of spirit. For in much wisdom is much grief: and he that increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrow.